Charlotte Sometimes
Metascore
72 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 16 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 14 out of 16
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 16
  3. Negative: 0 out of 16
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  1. Chicago Sun-Times
    Reviewed by: Roger Ebert
    88
    Drew me in from the opening shots. Byler reveals his characters in a way that intrigues and even fascinates us, and he never reduces the situation to simple melodrama, which would release the tension. This is like a psychological thriller, in which the climax has to do with feelings, not actions.
  2. The Hollywood Reporter
    Reviewed by: Sheri Linden
    80
    In his feature debut, writer-director Eric Byler demonstrates a refreshing trust in his material and his audience, crafting a compact, intriguing drama from understated performances and a subtle visual sensibility.
  3. Film Threat
    Reviewed by: Eric Campos
    80
    The cast is top-notch and I predict there will be plenty of female audience members drooling over Michael Idemoto as Michael.
  4. L.A. Weekly
    Reviewed by: Hazel-Dawn Dumpert
    80
    Lovely ensemble piece.
  5. Los Angeles Times
    Reviewed by: Kevin Thomas
    80
    Would that all love stories were as sophisticated and amusing as the satisfying Charlotte Sometimes.
  6. The New York Times
    Reviewed by: Dave Kehr
    80
    A tiny film that reflects a large talent.
  7. Variety
    Reviewed by: Robert Koehler
    80
    The deft shading he (Byler) elicits from his thesps is of a piece with his dramatics and his understated, artful approach to compositions and movement.
  8. Washington Post
    Reviewed by: Desson Thomson
    80
    Wonderful images, hues, sensations and faces.
  9. New York Post
    Reviewed by: Megan Lehmann
    75
    It's a hushed work of restrained emotions, elliptical storytelling and spare dialogue, peopled with smart, authentic characters who have drawn you into their lives before you know it.
  10. San Francisco Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Carla Meyer
    75
    Sexy, surprising romance.
  11. TV Guide
    Reviewed by: Ken Fox
    70
    Thick with sexual intrigue and characters who only reveal themselves over time, this subtle mystery unfolds like something a kinder Neil LaBute might have cooked up earlier in his career.
  12. Village Voice
    Reviewed by: Dennis Lim
    70
    Using vagueness as a crutch, Charlotte Sometimes makes a fetish of opacity. Still, whether or not it's a pose, the film's poised reticence is refreshing in context -- a rebuke to the contemporary crop of blabbermouthed American indies.
  13. Portland Oregonian
    Reviewed by: Kim Morgan
    67
    An erotic mystery of sorts, the film works because it's laconic rather than talky and its actors are all up for the material.
  14. Miami Herald
    Reviewed by: Marta Barber
    63
    Sometimes engaging, sometimes amusing and ultimately surprising.
  15. Chicago Reader
    Reviewed by: Ted Shen
    60
    The screenplay becomes annoyingly vague--Byler tries to conjure heavy weather out of Charlotte's mysterious past, but the details are confusing and the ending bewilderingly abrupt.
  16. Austin Chronicle
    Reviewed by: Marjorie Baumgarten
    50
    Writer-director Byler, in his first feature film, also proves to be a noteworthy new voice, even if his cinematic sense outweighs his narrative sense in this initial outing.

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